Document control based on copyright permission when printing compilation of works

ABSTRACT

A method for controlling copyright permissions when assembling multiple copyrighted works into a compiled file. The copyright permission level of each file is analyzed, either based on the copyright permission information present in metadata associated with the file or based on the digital file format of the file which reflects the permission level. The compiled file is assigned a permission level which is the same as or more restrictive than all of the permission level of the files in the compilation, and is generated in a format that enforces the assigned permission level. A notification may be displayed to the user to notify the use of the permission level assigned to the compiled file.

BACKGROUND OF THE INVENTION

1. Field of the Invention

This invention relates to a method of controlling access and use ofcopyrighted documents, and in particular, it relates to such controlwhen generating a compilation of works in electronic or printed forms.

2. Description of Related Art

With the wide adoption of a variety of electronic reading devices, suchas e-book readers, tablet computers, smart phones, laptop computers,etc., works such as books, articles, images and graphics, etc. which aretraditionally available in print forms are now increasingly beingconsumed in electronic (digital) forms. Consumers purchase or otherwiseobtain works in electronic form suitable for electronic reading devices.Meanwhile, consumers sometimes desire to print such works in hardcopyform, for example by utilizing services commonly referred to as printon-demand (POD). POD refers to production of commercial-quality printedand finished products such as books and booklets on a relatively smallscale, typically by a professional print shop, at the request ofcustomers. In a POD transaction, a customer provides the contents(electronic form) to be printed and specifies the physical requirementsof the printed product, and the print shop produces such productaccording to the customer's specifications.

As works are often protected by copyright, management of copyright ofworks being consumed in various formats (electronic, hardcopy, etc.) isimportant. For example, when a customer request printing of a booklet bya POD service, some contents provided by the customer may be copyrightedwork, and compliance with copyright permission may be a concern.

SUMMARY

The present invention is directed to a method and related apparatus forfacilitating compliance of copyright protection for works when multipleworks are being assembled into a compilation in electronic and/or printform.

Additional features and advantages of the invention will be set forth inthe descriptions that follow and in part will be apparent from thedescription, or may be learned by practice of the invention. Theobjectives and other advantages of the invention will be realized andattained by the structure particularly pointed out in the writtendescription and claims thereof as well as the appended drawings.

To achieve these and/or other objects, as embodied and broadlydescribed, the present invention provides a method for generating acompiled file, which includes: receiving a plurality of digital fileseach representing a work, at least some of the files each havingmetadata associated with it which specifies a permission level for usingthe file or having a file format which is compatible with a permissionlevel for using the file; receiving an user instruction to produce acompiled filed containing contents of the plurality of files; analyzingthe permission level of each of the plurality of files based on themetadata associated with the file and/or the file format of the file;assigning a permission level to the compiled file, the permission levelof the compiled file being the same as or more restrictive than all ofthe permission levels of the files; and generating the compiled file ina digital format compatible with the assigned permission level.

In another aspect, the present invention provides a computer programproduct comprising a computer usable non-transitory medium (e.g. memoryor storage device) having a computer readable program code embeddedtherein for controlling a data processing apparatus, the computerreadable program code configured to cause the data processing apparatusto execute the above method.

It is to be understood that both the foregoing general description andthe following detailed description are exemplary and explanatory and areintended to provide further explanation of the invention as claimed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION OF THE DRAWINGS

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a system environment in whichembodiments of the present invention may be implemented.

FIG. 2 illustrates a computer-implemented method for generating acompilation of works according to an embodiment of the presentinvention.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION OF PREFERRED EMBODIMENTS

Embodiments of the present invention provides a method and relatedapparatus for facilitating management of and compliance with copyrightprotection for works such as written works, images, graphics, etc., inparticular in the context of assembling multiple works into acompilation for printing or electronic distribution.

A practical scenario of such compilation may be, for example, anorganization that desires to assemble and print training or educationalmaterials for its members.

More specifically, when a user desires to assemble multiple works into acompilation and print the compilation as a booklet by a POD service, anelectronic file containing the multiple works needs to be generated.Sometimes, works in the compilation may be copyrighted, and differentworks may have different copyright restrictions or permissions attachedto them, depending on what kind of permissions have been obtained fromthe copyright holders. For example, the permission may be to read anarticle on an electronic reading device but not to print it. Or, thepermission may be to read it on only one electronic reading device butthe user is not permitted to make additional electronic copies. Or, thepermission may be for printing a limited number of printed copies of thework, etc.

According to one embodiment of the present invention, when generatingthe electronic file containing the multiple works, the electronic filewill be generated in a format that provides the most restrictivepermission of all the different permissions attached to the differentworks in the compilation. For example, if some works have a “read butnot print” permission, and all other have a “read and print” permission,then the resulting electronic file will be given the “read but notprint” permission and will be generated in an appropriate format toreflect this permission.

According to another embodiment, when generating the electronic file forthe compilation, the user is notified if undesirable or incompatiblelevels of permissions are detected in the compiling process. Forexample, in the above example where the compiled electronic file isgiven a “read but not print” permission, if the user's intent is to makea compiled file for purposes of printing it as a booklet, thenotification will help the user identify and solve the problem, such asby obtaining a higher level of permission for some of the works.

FIG. 1 schematically illustrates a system environment in whichembodiments of the present invention may be implemented. The systemincludes a server 1, a client or user computer 2, one or more copyrightclearinghouse servers 3, and a print shop server 4, connected via one ormore network such as the Internet or other communication links. A useruses the client computer 2 to interact with the server 1. The server 1executes a computer program stored in a memory to perform processesaccording to embodiments of the present invention. The copyrightclearinghouse stores digital contents that may be obtained for use byusers, and the clearinghouse server 3 manages the granting of copyrightpermissions for such works. The print shop may be a professional printshop equipped with printers and various other machines for producingprinted products such as books, booklets, etc. The print shop server 4manages the print jobs submitted to the print shop by customers.

Currently, copyright clearinghouses exist to facilitate distribution ofcopyrighted materials and to obtain and transfer payment to copyrightholders. An example is Copyright Clearance Center. In addition,publishers maintain their own digital repository of published work.Various organizations may also maintain their own digital libraries.Another source of copyrighted works in digital format is retailers ofelectronic books (e-books). Thus, while referred to as “clearinghouse”for convenient, component 3 of the system shown in FIG. 1 may generallyinclude any types of sources of digital content.

One functionality provided the server 1 is to allow the user to searchfor works in the one or more copyright clearinghouses 3. The search maybe by author, title, keywords, etc. The server 1 receives a search queryfrom the user 2, and performs multiple searches in multipleclearinghouses 3 on behalf of the user. This functionality also allowsthe user to acquire (e.g. through a purchase) desired works from theclearinghouses 3 with a specific permission to use the copyrightedworks. The works so acquired often have metadata attached to them tospecify the level of permission for use, and/or be in a format thatautomatically enforces certain levels of permission to use.

In addition to acquiring works from the clearinghouses 3, the server 1also allows users to upload documents (which the user already possesses)to be included in the compilation. Some of such uploaded documents may,similar to works acquired from the clearinghouses 3, have copyrightmetadata data attached to them and/or be in a format that automaticallyenforces certain levels of permission to use.

Another functionality provided by the server 1 is to assist the user tocompile the multiple works into an electronic file. Various editingfunctions may be provided.

Another functionality provided by the server 1 is to interact with theprint shop server 4 to submit a compiled file for printing.

Thus, the server 1 provides an integrated service that allows a user tosearch and acquire copyrighted works from sources of such works, uploadhis own files, compile them into an electronic file, and submit thecompiled file to a POD service to produce a printed product. The usersmay establish accounts on the server 1 and store digital contents in hisaccount, making it easy to manage digital contents for printing andother purposes.

The physical locations or the commercial relationship among the variouscomponents of the system of FIG. 1 are not important. For example, theserver 1 may be operated by the copyright clearinghouse 3, or the printshop, or a separate organization or commercial establishment.

A method implemented in the server 1 is described with reference to FIG.2. A GUI is preferably provided to allow the user 2 to interact with theserver program to perform various steps of the process.

In step S21, the server 1 receives a search query from the user 2 andperforms a search in one or more clearinghouses 3. If the user desiresto acquire any works from any of the clearinghouses 3, the server 1performs purchase transactions on behalf of the user to obtain the work(step S21). It should be noted that the term “purchase” is used in thisdisclosure to refer to transitions regardless of whether they involve apayment of money. As a result of the purchase transactions, works aredownloaded to the server 1 from the clearinghouse 3 as electronic files(step S21).

Typically, the files downloaded from the clearinghouses 3 have metadataassociated with them which describes, among other things, the type ofcopyright permission granted for this copy of the work. In addition, thefiles may be in various electronic formats that restricts their use. Forexample, certain forms of PDF files allow the file to be viewed on anelectronic device but not printed, or allow the file to be printed butnot viewed on the electronic device. As another example, files in someformat may only be read by certain devices or certain software programs;examples include various e-book formats. In another example, some filesmay be encrypted and can only be viewed or otherwise used by a userholding necessary decryption keys.

In step S22, the user uploads his own files onto the server 1. Some ofthese files may have metadata associated with them, and/or be in anelectronic format that restricts their use, similar to those describedin the preceding paragraph. For example, some of the user-uploaded filesmay have been previously obtained from a copyright clearinghouse 3.Steps S21 and S22 may collectively be considered a step of obtainingelectronic files that can be later assembled into a compilation.

In step S23, the server 1 receives an instruction from the user tocompile multiple files into a compilation. The instruction identifiesthe files to be included in the compilation, their order, editingformat, and other additional information. As mentioned earlier, a GUImay be used to provide an interactive way for the user to specify thevarious requirements of the compilation.

In response to the instruction, the server 1 analyzes the permissionlevel for each identified file of the compilation, and based on thisanalysis, assigns a permission level to the file being compiled (stepS24). The analysis for each file may be done by inspecting the metadataassociated with the files, and/or detecting the permission level basedon the format of the files. For example, the permission level for a filewill be “read but not print” if the metadata so specifies or if the fileis in a format that allows viewing but not printing. If no relevantmetadata is associated with a file and it is in a format that permitsunrestricted use, the use for that file is not restricted.

The permission level assigned to the compiled file is one that is thesame as or more restrictive than all of the permission level of thefiles in the compilation. A suitable logic operation may be implementedto ensure that permission level of the compiled file meets the aboverequirement. For example, if some of the files have a permission levelof “read but not print” and all other files have a permission level of“read and print”, then the compiled file will be given a permissionlevel of “read but not print”. If some files have a permission level of“read but not print” and some other files have a permission level of“print but not read”, the permission level of the compiled file will be“neither read nor print”.

As seen from the above examples, as a result of the permission levelanalysis, the compiled file may be given a permission level that makesit impractical or useless for the user. In step S25, the user isnotified of the permission level being assigned to the compiled file,and given the options to continue with or discontinue the compilationrequest. If the user chooses to discontinue the compilation (“N” in stepS26), the user may go back to previous steps of the process to obtainother works from the clearinghouses 3 or obtain different levels ofpermission for some of the works (step S21), upload other files to theserver 1 (step S23), and re-attempt to make a compilation (step S23).

If the user chooses to continue with the compilation process (“Y” instep S26), the server 1 generates a compiled file which contains thecontent of the multiple files indentified in the user instruction andcomplies with the editing format requirements of the user instruction(step S27). The format of the file is one that is consistent with thepermission level assigned in step S24. As described earlier, variouselectronic file formats are available that enforces various types orlevels of permission for use. More such formats may become available inthe future. Any suitable method may be used to generate the compiledfile in an appropriate file format compatible with the permission level.

After the compiled file is generated, the server 1 may submit thecompiled file to the print shop server 4 for printing at the user'srequest (step S28). The user may also choose to distribute theelectronic file without printing.

In an alternative embodiment, if the permission level assigned to thecompiled file in step S24 is sufficiently permissive, for example itallows both read and print, the notification steps S25 and S26 may beomitted. In one example, the user instruction received in step S23contains a request to print the compiled file. In such a case, thenotification is generated in step S25 if the permission level assignedto the compiled file does not allow printing; otherwise the notificationis omitted.

It will be apparent to those skilled in the art that variousmodification and variations can be made in the method and relatedapparatus of the present invention without departing from the spirit orscope of the invention. Thus, it is intended that the present inventioncover modifications and variations that come within the scope of theappended claims and their equivalents.

1.-10. (canceled)
 11. A method for generating a compiled file,comprising: receiving a plurality of digital files each representing awork, at least some of the files each having metadata associated with itwhich specifies a permission level for using the file or having a fileformat which is compatible with a permission level for using the file,wherein each permission level includes a parameter regarding whether ornot to permit printing of the file; receiving a user instruction toproduce a compiled file containing contents of the plurality of files;analyzing the permission level of each of the plurality of files basedon the metadata associated with the file and/or the file format of thefile, and comparing a plurality of permission levels of the plurality offiles to determine a most restrictive permission level among theplurality of permission levels of the plurality of files contained inthe compiled file, wherein the determined most restrictive permissionlevel includes a parameter regarding whether or not to permit printingof the compiled file which is the most restrictive among the secondparameters of the plurality of permission levels of the plurality offiles; when the parameter of the determined most restrictive permissionlevel indicates that printing of the compiled file is not permitted,notifying the user of the most restrictive permission level which is tobe assigned to the compiled file; and when the parameter of thedetermined most restrictive permission level indicate that printing ofthe compiled file are permitted, assigning to the compiled file apermission level which is the same as or more restrictive than the mostrestrictive permission level of the plurality of files determined by thecomparison, without notifying the user.
 12. The method of claim 11,further comprising: generating the compiled file in a digital format inaccordance with the assigned permission level.
 13. The method of claim11, further comprising: generating the compiled file; and associatingmetadata with the compiled file which describes the permission levelassigned to the compiled file.
 14. The method of claim 13, furthercomprising: if the permission level of the compiled file allows forprinting, submitting the compiled file for printing.
 15. The method ofclaim 11, further comprising: notifying a user of the permission levelbeing assigned to the compiled file.
 16. A computer program productcomprising a computer usable non-transitory medium having a computerreadable program code embedded therein for controlling a data processingapparatus, the computer readable program code configured to cause thedata processing apparatus to execute a process for generating a compiledfile, the process comprising: receiving a plurality of digital fileseach representing a work, at least some of the files each havingmetadata associated with it which specifies a permission level for usingthe file or having a file format which is compatible with a permissionlevel for using the file, wherein each permission level includes aparameter regarding whether or not to permit printing of the file;receiving a user instruction to produce a compiled file containingcontents of the plurality of files; analyzing the permission level ofeach of the plurality of files based on the metadata associated with thefile and/or the file format of the file, and comparing a plurality ofpermission levels of the plurality of files to determine a mostrestrictive permission level among the plurality of permission levels ofthe plurality of files contained in the compiled file, wherein thedetermined most restrictive permission level includes a parameterregarding whether or not to permit printing of the compiled file whichis the most restrictive among the second parameters of the plurality ofpermission levels of the plurality of files; when the parameter of thedetermined most restrictive permission level indicates that printing ofthe compiled file is not permitted, notifying the user of the mostrestrictive permission level which is to be assigned to the compiledfile; and when the parameter of the determined most restrictivepermission level indicate that printing of the compiled file arepermitted, assigning to the compiled file a permission level which isthe same as or more restrictive than the most restrictive permissionlevel of the plurality of files determined by the comparison, withoutnotifying the user.
 17. The computer program product of claim 16,wherein the process further comprises: generating the compiled file in adigital format in accordance with the assigned permission level.
 18. Thecomputer program product of claim 16, wherein the process furthercomprises: generating the compiled file; and associating metadata withthe compiled file which describes the permission level assigned to thecompiled file.
 19. The computer program product of claim 18, wherein theprocess further comprises: if the permission level of the compiled fileallows for printing, submitting the compiled file for printing.
 20. Thecomputer program product of claim 16, wherein the process furthercomprises: notifying a user of the permission level being assigned tothe compiled file.